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CHICAGO — Here’s a benefit of the housing bust: It has created a generation of young Americans
who are more knowledgeable about homeownership than their baby boomer parents were at their
age.

At least that’s what the younger ones think.

Those between the ages of 18 and 35 still want to own a home, and they view homeownership as an
indicator of success, according to a recent survey by Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate. But
they’ll buy only when they’re sure they’re ready for the responsibility — a sign of maturity from a
group that is stereotyped as being fiscally irresponsible and maintaining a less-than-stellar work
ethic.

Moreover, 69 percent of the 1,001 18- to 35-year-olds surveyed also said the housing downturn
has made them more knowledgeable about owning a home than their parents were at their age.
Seventy-seven percent think they’ve gained much of this knowledge via the media coverage of the
real-estate industry in the past six years.

“They’re not going to end up getting into a situation that they’ve seen where they can’t keep
the house” because they can no longer afford it, said Matt Rand, managing partner of Better Homes
and Gardens Rand Realty, a brokerage of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate based in New York and
New Jersey.

Still, this survey suggests they haven’t given up on homeownership — even though other
statistics and stories indicate people in this age group would rather remain renters, he said.

While favorable home prices and low mortgage rates are tempting, people in this age group also
are not going to buy until they’re ready for the responsibility. Sixty-nine percent said they will
buy not only when they can afford it but also when it won’t disrupt their lifestyles.

It was only after saving down-payment money, coming up to the end of his MBA studies and getting
a better job that 31-year-old Brandon Savisky bought his $224,000 home in Houston.

“It was more of my personal circumstances than market-driven,” he said of his purchase.

The survey also found that 75 percent of people in this age group think that owning a nice home
is a key indicator of success, more so than taking extravagant vacations, owning an expensive car
or having designer clothes. Forty percent said they would take on a second job to save for a home;
23 percent said they would move in with their parents to make it happen.

Members of Gen Y “are living at home with their parents,” Rand said, “but this (survey) suggests
they’re being strategic in living at home — not because they’re slacking.”